MaxMar

First, an abbreviated resume: Right now I'm sitting at 766 total time, been flying jumpers for a little over a year and built around 400 hours doing it. Instrument current since I received my rating 2 years ago, 150 hours of glass cockpit. But no CFI or multi. Hoping to fly for a Boutique/Surf Air/Planesense immediately after I graduate university in May 2018. Our DZ recently finished a turbine conversion on a 206 and I'll be logging a couple hundred hours of turbine PIC between now and then. Hoping for about ~1000 hours TT when my resume hits the market, ~1200 right at graduation.

I've heard quite a lot on both sides of the argument about whether I'd be competitive for jobs at companies stated above. Lots of folks at my school tell me that I'd be better off quitting and putting some money (that's hard to come by, mind you) into a CFI. They say jumper dumping is trash time, is unattractive to employers, and some even immediately discard jump pilots because of the stereotype (sometimes correct, as easily seen on YouTube) that we're dangerous pilots with bad habits. Others say diver driving is great time, good stick and rudder, lots of high performance (and turbine, in my case), dealing with unique situations CFIs may not ever see. I can see valid points on both sides of the coin. I want to fly a SE tprop for someone for a couple years in the IFR environment (with my time I'd like a < 6 month upgrade) and perhaps move into 121 or high-end 135 someday. I get vibes that the low time stepping stones are harder to get into than the regional airlines, and for a guy that's more interested in the 135/91K world that's worrisome. I don't want to fly a Pilatus forever, but I want to do it as PIC for a few years before hitting the jet charter / airline companies.

What is your opinion on my situation? Is VFR turbine PIC going to be enough to get into the places I want to be? I will get my multi as soon as I have a 'real job' where I can afford it, but CFI may not be possible before then. I see these places hiring direct entry street captains but also heard rumors about candidates being turned away for 'lack of appropriate experience', whatever that means.

Dontfly4free

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Couple of things, don't confuse jealousy with advice . Sounds like sevaeral people are trying to tell you bad stuff because you are building turbine PIC while they sit right seat for a touch AND go in a 172 for 7 days straight. Second if you really are getting that many hours that quickly stick around there get the rest to go to a regional and do that. Regionals don't give two craps where your hours come from as long as they can get you your ATP at then end of training. With going to boutique or surf your giving up about 7 months of seniority at a regional. Which is the difference between holding a good line and sitting reserve. If a legacy is the end goal I would finish grabbing my hours dropping jumpers and then go to regional no need to slow to process by flying 135 when it honestly reads like you do not need to.

TiredSoul

Here's my $0.02's:

Every shade or flavor of flying has its short comings.
To me 'quality' of time means how many columns in my logbook can I fill with that one flight.
Hence my recommendation to my CPL students to do their timebuilding at night doing XC's on an IFR flightplan and flying lots of approaches.
I had European students add a column : IFR flightplan as their logging requirements are a little different.
How much learning is taking place during the accumulation of experience?
A 1000 times the same flight or 1000 different flights?

Back to your question:
You'll have a gazillion landings but apart from PIC and TT the 'quality' ( as described above) is limited as you're not gaining IFR experience and XC time. Same with banner towing and to a certain extend flight instructing also.
After 1000's of traffic patterns you plateau and stop learning also.

You already meet the hiring requirements of a company like PlaneSense.
You'll gain :
Multi crew experience
IFR ( filed and actual)
XC
Loads of approaches
135 experience.


My vote it's time to move on and it may not be a CFI that you should be looking for.

On a site note: the recruiter or HR persons may not give a hoot about your hours except TT but you will run into a wall during sim training if you're just scating on bare minimum experience.

Good luck whatever you decide.
Let us know.

snowballsteve

If this is true in the industry, it could explain why I have had a hard time getting calls back. For the PC12 operators, only Boutique has reached out to me. Otherwise I'm in a similar position to you except instead of getting the turbine upgrade my DZ just closed up shop instead. Been hoping to hear from Planesense, as that is basically my end goal for type of flying and schedule.

JohnBurke

I know a number of kids flying turbine equipment at drop zones, who go on to airline jobs.

Your biggest challenge is cross country time.

I've flown a lot of jumpers and jumped some, too (C license and 30 years or so). Jump operations do tend to merit less respect, as does ag work and certain other kinds of flying, and not just because it's VFR. In some cases, it's well justified, others not. I've flown for some very small dropzones through the biggest in the world, seen the gamut. I've seen deplorable maintenance, and very good maintenance, safe operations and ones that are anything but.

Here's the thing: you're working, and you're flying. Your logged time is pilot in command, and it's turbine. Unless you're applying to a DZ, nobody is going to have you break down your time to show how much of it was flying jumpers. It's just turbine PIC.

if your instrument skills are up to par enough that you can pass an oral and sim ride, and if you are capable, then your time will be useful in advancing your career.

You could go get your CFI, but lets face it; you're not going to leave flying jumpers to go instruct. You're going to leave flying jumpers to take a job in the direction you want to go, and getting the CFI right now would be tantamount to padding your resume and little else. Having it doesnt make you better; using it can.

Get yourself to 135 minimums and to ATP minimums. That will make you more competitive. Remember, however, that the industry is always awash with thousand-hour hopefuls and those who meet ATP minimums.

Also bear in mind that different employers break down your flight time and experience in different ways. Some look at single or multi; if it's single they may not care much if it's turbine or piston. Others put all piston in the same box. I applied to one airline years ago that counted my experience flying four engine radial powered bombers the same as a 172...because all piston time was counted the same. You can second guess them to death and still not get it right.

Get as much PIC and multi and turbine and instrument experience as you can, but always remember that an hour of flight time and an hour of experience are not the same thing.

ShadyMilkman

Right on the money.

Charlie Foxtrot

I have two friends who flew jumpers. Both also rounded out their resumes by racking up cross country time and picked up some instrument time flying as ferry pilots. Both also did CFI work, tho not much, just to fill in the winter gaps. The important thing is to keep moving forward towards your goal. Good luck.

PetRock

Diversity is definitely the biggest pitfall when using jump pilot flying to build time. If I was looking at someone's logbook and saw that they made other flights to deliberately train and retain skills that you don't use when skydiving, like IFR flight plans, flights with CFI's, XCs, etc. vs. a jumper dumper that had done nothing but skydiving flights for the last 2 years, I would likely lean much more towards the candidate that kept their other skills fresh, all other factors being equal.

The other flight experience that I have found is almost totally worthless to some groups is CAP flying... some people I have talked to have even said that they know people who even see it as a negative, but I could never confirm. Its a real shame because my local area has lots of mountains and awful weather most of the winter so going through their aircrew and mountain flying school was some of the best training I have ever had, and no one cares or believes me because CAP has such a bad rep...